US Continental Carbon settles emissions lawsuit for $10.5m

03 August 2009 21:41[Source: ICIS news]

HOUSTON (ICIS news)--Continental Carbon has agreed to pay $10.5m (€7.4m) under a court-approved settlement in an environmental lawsuit filed by the Ponca Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma, the US carbon black producer said on Monday.

In addition, the company agreed to make $800,000 available to 11,000 property owners in ?xml:namespace>Ponca City, Oklahoma, if they can establish actual damages caused by carbon black emissions from the plant.

“While we strongly disagree with the claims of the plaintiffs in both of these class action lawsuits, settling these cases allows our company to focus on managing our business in a highly competitive environment,” said company president Kim Pan.

The court’s order also establishes specific terms for future emissions disputes. Complaints are to be made to Continental Carbon within seven days of the alleged event so that samples can be taken and tested, if necessary, the company said.